Which stage (pre-conventional, conventional, or post-conventional) of Kohlberg's Morality Development theory do you think best describes Edward Snowden? Why?
According to the moral development levels by Kohlberg, the post-conventional level best describes the actions of Snowden. At this level, it is significant to uphold the laws and social conventions which keep the society functioning, but the laws should be just and in accordance with the universal ethical principle. Some laws at this level are considered unjust and people believe that they should be eliminated or changed. In the level, people become aware of their own ethical principles which then guide their own actions. There is a realization of self-ethical principles which are often used to justify actions.
Nonetheless, the verification that Snowden tried to go through different channels of the NSA before releasing the documents to the press takes the actions into a different level of moral judgment; this is best expressed by the moral methodology of Post Conventional level. Because nobody was killed or harmed in the process of releasing the documents, the actions can be morally justified through the Post Conventional level stage six: Universal-Ethical-Principal Orientation. At this stage, the moral reason is based on conceptual reasoning and applying universal ethics. Laws are applicable only if they are based on justice and is committed to justice means that unjust laws can be disobeyed. In his actions, Snowden states that the leak was necessary in order to expose the secret laws, irresistible executive and unequal powers. The surveillance machine that was being built would impose on people’s privacy; destroy basic liberties and internet freedom of the people.
According to Snowden, the laws were not just and he acted based on conventional morality with an intention of getting rid or changing the unjust laws. Exposing government documents is an illegal act but their invasion of privacy had to be exposed because it is against the universal ethical principles.
What do you think of Snowden's actions? How do you think his case should be handled? Why?
I believe that Snowden’s actions were ethical and he acted out of the greater good. He violated the secrecy laws and agreement which is just a contract and less important compared to the social contract that the citizens have with democracy. Snowden might have been legally culpable because of acting against federal laws but he is not ethically culpable, the law was against the universal principles making it unconstitutional and unjust.
By revealing the immensity of the U.S. government’s surveillance on the people of America and around the world, Snowden executed an immense public service which outweighs the breach of secrecy he might have committed himself in. Just like Daniel Ellsberg-former official of Defense Department- who exposed the Pentagon Papers, Snowden made the public aware of vital information that directly affected them and there was no lasting negative impact on the country (Cassidy, 2013).
Snowden should be pardoned and be left free because looking at the documents he released; they did not expose the algorithms used by the N.S.A, the people or groups targeted by the governments or the U.S. agents’ identities. All the documents reveal was that the U.S. government without any warrant from the court collects phone logs of millions of people they believe are suspects or links to terrorism. Therefore, Snowden should be pardoned because it did not cause any security breach or cause any kind of harm.
Works Cited
"Cache://(courses.lumenlearning.com/teachereducationx92x1/chapter/kohlbergs-stages-of-moral-development/) Google Search." (courses.lumenlearning.com/teachereducationx92x1/chapter/kohlbergs-stages-of-moral-development/).
Cassidy, J. (2013) "Why Edward Snowden Is a Hero." The New Yorker, www.newyorker.com/news/john-cassidy/why-edward-snowden-is-a-hero.
"DOCUMENTARY: Edward Snowden - Terminal F (2015)." YouTube, 24 May 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nd6qN167wKo.
"Profile: Edward Snowden." BBC News, 16 Dec. 2013, www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-22837100.
